The advisory board members of the Metaphor Lab each write a short blog about their current research on metaphor.

This time, Chiua Xu writes about the argumentative function of metaphor in argumentation.

Metaphor is often used in daily communication. A number of studies focus on how metaphor may enhance the persuasive power of discourse (e.g. Cameron & Deignan, 2006; Charteris-Black, 2011; Hauser & Schwarz, 2014). But since these studies approach to metaphor from a purely rhetorical perspective, the question as to how metaphor is used in argumentation remains unanswered. In our research, we study metaphor from the perspective of a rational discussion, focusing on questions such as: What representations do metaphors have in argumentation? How do metaphorical expressions function in different types of arguments? In this blog, I discuss three projects that focus on these issues.